MLB News

Beltran gala features auction, Batting Stance Guy

By
Nick SussMLB.com

MANHATTAN, N.Y. -- Thanks to Carlos Beltran, the Yankees participated in a day-night doubleheader of sorts Wednesday, with the nightcap being a slightly higher-class affair.

Just hours after defeating the Rockies in walk-off fashion, Beltran and some of his Yankees teammates ascended upon Gotham Hall in Manhattan for the 10th annual "Let's Score!" gala presented by the Carlos Beltran Foundation. Beltran was joined by teammates that included Jacoby Ellsbury, Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller, Michael Pineda and more, as well as former Yankees like Bernie Williams and media personalities such as Michael Kay.

MANHATTAN, N.Y. -- Thanks to Carlos Beltran, the Yankees participated in a day-night doubleheader of sorts Wednesday, with the nightcap being a slightly higher-class affair.

Just hours after defeating the Rockies in walk-off fashion, Beltran and some of his Yankees teammates ascended upon Gotham Hall in Manhattan for the 10th annual "Let's Score!" gala presented by the Carlos Beltran Foundation. Beltran was joined by teammates that included Jacoby Ellsbury, Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller, Michael Pineda and more, as well as former Yankees like Bernie Williams and media personalities such as Michael Kay.

The "classic baseball" theme of the night was evident upon walking in, as men posing as bronze statues of Yankees legends lined the walls and women dressed in the iconic Peaches uniform from "A League of Their Own" roamed the ballroom as a jazz band played.

A large portion of the fundraiser was centered around the silent auction, which featured packages ranging from hotel stays to signed Justin Bieber albums. Most of the merchandise in the silent auction was signed sports memorabilia however. Jerseys, bats, balls and helmets signed by nearly every current Yankee sat alongside paraphernalia signed by the likes of baseball stars Mike Trout, Miguel Cabrera, Josh Donaldson and David Price, among others.

Also littered among the group were signatures from both Peyton and Eli Manning, hockey stars Henrik Lundqvist and John Tavares, New York Knick Carmelo Anthony and MLB Hall of Famers Reggie Jackson, Mike Piazza and Cal Ripken Jr.

The piece of memorabilia that most caught Beltran's eye, though, wasn't a bat or a ball. It was an instrument he coveted.

"I think there's some guitars with all the team's signs," he said. "So I'm looking forward to [bidding] on one of those."

Beltran even went on to joke that he would love it if Williams, the classically trained guitarist, would play a song or two for them on this night.

But that wasn't the only thing Beltran said he was looking forward to about Wednesday's gala. One of the guests at the function was Gar Ryness, better known on the internet as "Batting Stance Guy," a man who has the bizarre but captivating talent of mimicking the batting stances of Major League ballplayers, something Beltran said he'll be delighted to see.

"I'm basically boring, so I don't think he will do a lot of things [about me] out there," Beltran said. "But the other guys that he imitates? He's a good guy. He's fun."

As for what drew Beltran's teammates to the event, both Miller and Betances agreed that Beltran's selflessness and general compassion as a teammate was the main, if not only, draw.

"Carlos does a tremendous job with the foundation he has, with the Academy back in Puerto Rico," Betances said. "It's unbelievable for him to do this. As a teammate, I just want to support him and show brotherly love."